


Know It All Knight

by Shi_Toyu



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Arthur Finds Out, Gen, Magic Revealed, Oblivious Arthur, protective leon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-22 20:31:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8299948
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shi_Toyu/pseuds/Shi_Toyu
Summary: Leon couldn’t say for sure when the exact moment was that he figured out Merlin had magic. He’d suspected it for a little while, to be honest. He definitely had it figured out by the time Arthur managed to ‘kill’ the Great Dragon. What Leon could say for sure was the exact moment he figured out that no one else had figured out Merlin had magic.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PeaceHeather](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PeaceHeather/gifts).



> Woohoo! First foray into Merlin fics! I hope you all enjoy!

Leon couldn’t say for sure when the exact moment was that he figured out Merlin had magic. He’d suspected it for a little while, to be honest. He definitely had it figured out by the time Arthur managed to ‘kill’ the Great Dragon. What Leon _could_ say for sure was the exact moment he figured out that _no one else_ had figured out Merlin had magic.

“So, what, you’ve just been lying to me this entire time?” Arthur questioned angrily, getting right up in Merlin’s face.

The manservant would have shrunk back if he weren’t already pressed up against a tree with nowhere to go.

“I-I wasn’t _lying_ , exactly,” he protested. “I just hadn’t found quite the right time to tell you.”

Arthur scoffed, spinning away and throwing his hands up in what could only be disgusted exasperation. The other knights hovered nearby, each clearly going through their own struggle. Elyan had a hand on his sword, though Gwaine looked the closest to intervening even if he looked nervous about it.

“Oh, really?” Arthur sneered. “Tell me, when exactly would the ‘right time’ be for you to tell me you’re _breaking the law_? You’re a bloody _sorcerer!_ How long have you been practicing magic, you complete _idiot?_ I know you know what the law says about sorcerers.”

Merlin balked, what little color there was left in his face draining away.

“I can’t help it,” he blurted out desperately. “It’s not something I just woke up and decided to _do_ one day! I was just born this way!”

“You can’t honestly expect me to believe that. Nobody is _born_ with magic,” Arthur shot back, his tone biting.

Leon took a step forward and reached for his king.

“Sire-“

“Well, I was,” Merlin shouted, clearly distraught and cutting Leon off. He was shaking a bit, fear and anger warring in his eyes. “Magic is a part of who I _am_ , Arthur! I know you think all Magic is evil and bad but it _isn’t_! It can be good! I swear to you, I would never use magic to hurt Camelot!”

“But you could,” Arthur snapped. “I bet it would be pretty easy for you, too, being the king’s manservant and all. You’ve spent _years_ making yourself at home, getting to know everyone, making yourself a familiar face. You could get access just about anywhere in the castle. It wouldn’t even take much effort for you to do serious damage.”

Merlin couldn’t have looked more shocked and betrayed if Arthur had drawn his sword and run the sorcerer through. Enough was enough. Someone needed to put their foot down. Leon stepped between Arthur and Merlin, acting as a shield, with his back to Merlin and a hand on his sword. Arthur’s shock was probably the only reason he was able to say anything at all.

“If I may, Sire,” he began, striving to remain as respectful as possible, “Merlin has earned our thanks far more than our accusations. He _did_ just save our lives.”

It was true. The ground around them was littered with the partial bodies of giant scorpion-like creatures. The knights and their king had been surrounded and, though they’d been doing admirably to fend off the creatures, it had only been a matter of time. Merlin’s magical attack had taken them out in a matter of seconds. Arthur scowled.

“He’s a _sorcerer,_ ” the king insisted, as though that erased everything Merlin had ever done, all the years they had known each other. “He did it using _magic_.”

“And I, for one, am pretty glad he did,” Leon defended. “Forgive me if I’m the odd man out, Sire, but I’m pretty attached to my neck being attached to _me._ Besides, maybe he saved us using magic this time, but there have been others when he’s saved us, and you in particular, without it. What about the time he drank poison for you? Surely that must mean something.”

Arthur blustered, clearly off his footing with the direction this conversation had suddenly turned. He glared furiously at Leon.

“It’s against the law! We have vows, Sir Leon, to protect Camelot! You, of all people, I did not expect would forget that. You were a knight even before I was. You know the terror these… people can inflict!”

“Magic can inflict great damage, yes,” Leon agreed, “but I have also seen Merlin’s loyalty, seen him _save_ all of Camelot, enough times to know with whom he stands. I was there for Morgana’s first invasion, when she was not half as mad as she was by the end, and even then she could not hide it. _Merlin_ is not mad!”

“’Save all of Camelot,’” Arthur mocked. “When has _Mer_ lin ever saved all of Camelot?”

Had he not spent so many years practicing his composure, Leon would have thrown his hands up in frustration.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t even know,” Leon confessed, “because I’ve figured out a few of the times but I know there have been more than just those. We couldn’t have won against Morgana without him, I’ll tell you that much. That time Uther fought the Black Knight? _Nothing_ was working before that fight, Arthur. _Nothing_. Do you think your father just somehow managed to find a weak spot?”

Arthur practically _swelled_.

“My father,” he said very carefully, “was a great swordsman.”

“And no one is questioning that,” Leon placated, “but he was also out of practice and against an opponent who seemed able to withstand any mortal blow.”

“He could,” Merlin piped up, _finally_ getting with the program that someone was defending him. “The Black Knight was undead. He couldn’t be felled by any mortal blade. I had to switch the swords before the fight.”

Arthur looked like he wanted to strangle them both but it was Percival who spoke next.

“Exactly how long have you known about Merlin’s magic, then?” he asked, ever straight to the point.

Leon froze.

“A while.”

Arthur made a noise like a wounded animal.

“So… Merlin’s magic is just good magic, then,” Gwaine chipped in, still looking unsure. “That’s how this works, right?”

Arthur turned a steely glare on the knight.

“No, that is certainly _not_ how it works!”

“Why not?” Leon challenged.

Arthur looked gobsmacked.

“Because it’s _magic_! Have you all gone ‘round the bend?”

Leon resisted the urge to heave a sigh. He felt a lot like he was dealing with Gwaine instead of the usually level-headed Arthur. Really, he couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about all of a sudden.

“It wasn’t a problem when you thought Queen Guinevere was a sorceress.”

Arthur scoffed again.

“I have _never_ thought _Gwen_ was a sorceress.”

Leon kind of wanted to grab him by the shoulders and shake him.

“It was when that plague swept through Camelot, from the beast in the water, don’t you remember? Her father caught it but then suddenly got better. You argued with Uther about it. You said that surely there could be no evil in that act. If saving one’s _father_ has no evil then how can saving one’s _friends?_ ”

“Gwen isn’t a sorceress!” Arthur shouted.

It was clear he was reaching the end of his rope. Leon had also known the king long enough to know that he was about to win this argument.

“Of course not, but you couldn’t be sure of that at the time. The point is, Merlin’s done nothing but use his magic to _help_ Camelot and _help_ you. The King Arthur I know and the Prince Arthur I have followed for _years_ before this believed in justice and honor. He would never punish a man for helping in any and every way that he can. Perhaps Merlin cannot defend Camelot by sword, but that has not stopped him from doing everything he can to defend his home.”

Arthur stared at him for a long moment, still fuming. Then he looked past Leon to Merlin.

“This isn’t over,” he informed the warlock angrily. “As soon as we get back to Camelot, you and I are having a _talk_ , do you understand me?”

Merlin nodded vigorously.

“Yeah, of course. I mean, whatever you want, Sire.”

Arthur just rolled his eyes and turned away with a huff, his cape flapping dramatically.

“Come on, then, I want to be home before anything _else_ can possibly go wrong. Unless there are any more surprises any of you are hiding?”

There were only some scattered murmurings as the knights fell in to follow their king back home. Leon chose to stick near Merlin’s side, Gwaine on the other, as there was still a fair bit of nervousness floating around in the air.

“It’ll be alright,” he assured Merlin. “Arthur just needs a bit of time to adjust. I’d be prepared to go over each and every detail of your magic and what you’d done with it, though. He’ll want to know all that he can.”

Merlin shot him a grateful smile.

“Thank you, really. I, uh, well I guess I wasn’t expecting anyone to be so… okay with it. You’ve really known for so long?”

Leon shrugged.

“I think I was the only one who considered it an actual possibility and was willing to put the pieces together. Once Arthur starts looking back, he’ll feel right foolish for not having seen it himself.”

Merlin seemed amused by the thought before turning a bit more serious again.

“And… you’re really… okay with it? With me having magic?”

“Well, I wasn’t so much at first, but you brought me around,” Leon said, clapping Merlin on the shoulder. “You’re a good man, Merlin, and magic isn’t going to change that.”

“Yeah,” Gwaine tossed in from the sorcerer’s other side, “don’t let Princess get to you just because his panties are in a twist.”

Leon didn’t think he even attempted to keep from being overheard. At this rate, they were never going to make it back to Camelot. Not even Merlin’s magic would be enough to save them.


End file.
